TypewriterGirl Posted December 15, 2009 Report Share Posted December 15, 2009 I have an Omron BP cuff that monitors my blood pressure and pulse, and for some reason when I have a high heart rate the highest reading I can get is 149. I know when I have a fast heart rate, and I'll get an error everytime I check it standing. Does anyone else have this issue, or have another monitor that they recommend? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lauralulu Posted December 15, 2009 Report Share Posted December 15, 2009 I have a BP monitor that gives me errors certain times when standing, but because of the error I have no dea what my hr was at the time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommytoSJEA Posted December 15, 2009 Report Share Posted December 15, 2009 my monitor gives me an error when I take it standing half the time too. Especially when im super tachy. Wasnt sure why. Glad im not the only one~Kelli Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StacyRN Posted December 15, 2009 Report Share Posted December 15, 2009 Think I know why... my BP monitor would read Error many times when I was standing up, but then would read when I sat down. It's because when I was standing up my pulse was so thready that the machine couldn't pick it up, so couldn't get a pulse or BP reading, then when sitting it was a stronger pulse and would get a reading. Sometimes when I'm standing I can't even palpate a pulse myself because it's so faint and thready. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lauralulu Posted December 15, 2009 Report Share Posted December 15, 2009 Think I know why... my BP monitor would read Error many times when I was standing up, but then would read when I sat down. It's because when I was standing up my pulse was so thready that the machine couldn't pick it up, so couldn't get a pulse or BP reading, then when sitting it was a stronger pulse and would get a reading. Sometimes when I'm standing I can't even palpate a pulse myself because it's so faint and thready.I did wonder if that was why! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prettyinpink Posted December 15, 2009 Report Share Posted December 15, 2009 My omcron monitor seems to error with standing too. I often wonder if it is when my pulse pressure is low. I thought if the difference between my systolic and dystolic pressure was close then it couldn't tell them apart very well. I'm not sure if that's true but it only errors with standing when I feel my worst. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erik Posted December 16, 2009 Report Share Posted December 16, 2009 Arrhythmia is always a possibility to keep in the back of your mind. Some emerge based upon cardiac circumstance such as "high bpm" or related.I get "LO" when greg-brady crashes the party (like low 30bpm's). I get "ERR" if I squiggle or most often if I'm abyrhythmic (I can't help, I was born that way .I am overly gadgety person and end up doing most of my readings with BP/pulse meter at same time as Pulse/Ox (psych's call this OGD... Obsessive Gadget Disorder). Anywho, the Pulse/Ox shows me a graph of my "trace" (though it doesn't record this permanently)... so I can "see" when my stuff gets weird (and I'm accounting for the pulse-ox being sensitive to motion & other factors which I am cautious about). If my pulse trace is rather whacky, I'll get "double readings" or "half readings" for pulse from my BP meter... or just the "ERR" thing. Some of the BP meters out there claim to be able to detect some arrhythmias... not sure how well they do at that. If you do suspect arrhythmia, consider cardiac consult, stress test, holter, all that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firewatcher Posted December 16, 2009 Report Share Posted December 16, 2009 I don't pay attention to that portion anymore. I got a HR chest strap/watch monitor and watch it that way. I think that my cuff can't decide which HR to use since mine goes from 3 beats at 84 to 12 beats at 124 to 6 beats at 140 and back down to the 90s. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lissy Posted December 16, 2009 Report Share Posted December 16, 2009 Hey,I was just wondering, I also have electrical monitor and have had errors...Are they even equipit to read while standing???correctly. My monitors instruction sheet says sitting with wrist at heart level so when your standing anyway are u just holding your arm down??? or at chest level and if so is it actually accurate anyway?Lissy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StacyRN Posted December 16, 2009 Report Share Posted December 16, 2009 Just to clarify, I don't have any arrhythmias, just tachycardia, and my omron errors when standing cuz pulse is too faint to pick up. My doc confirmed this and says it is common in POTS patients. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flop Posted December 16, 2009 Report Share Posted December 16, 2009 When a doctor / nurse takes your BP using a cuff and stethoscope they actually listen for the blood flow in the artery. Automatic machines work differently they "feel" the pulse by measuring pressure differences in the cuff with each heartbeat. If your BP is very low, or your pulse pressure is very narrow (the systolic and diastolic pressures are close to each other) then there won't be a strong enough pulse for the machine to "feel". If you can't clearly feel your own pulse then any machine will struggle or give an error reading.The most acurate automatic BP monitors are ones with arm cuffs rather than wrist cuffs. Omron are generally regarded as being one of the best brands (most UK GP surgeries use omron monitors). The BP cuff should be at the same level as your heart. If your elbow is by your side (sitting or standing) then you probably have the arm cuff in the right place. For example if you lift your arm above your head then take a BP reading it will come out super low but won't be anything like what your BP in your main arteries is.Flop Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nikki Posted December 16, 2009 Report Share Posted December 16, 2009 I have an Omron too. It always seems to pick up my heart rate but my blood pressure fluctuates a lot..So when I'm standing, a lot of time it gives me an error. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chaos Posted December 18, 2009 Report Share Posted December 18, 2009 I'm still in the process of getting an official diagnosis so have been trying to do the "poorman's tilt table" that many of you recommended. I'm having the same problem with my Omron BP cuff. It reads fine lying down or sitting but I get an error reading more often than not when trying to take it standing. I've started using my HR monitor and recording that so at least I have the HR changes even if I can't get the BPs. (HR changes by 40-50 BPM with the change from supine to standing.)In the past I've noticed on all the gym equipment I used that my HR would dive suddenly from the 120s-170s down to 40s- 60's and then bounce back up after a bit. I kept blaming it on "that stupid equipment", although it seemed to happen with every monitor I used. Had a stress echo this spring and guess what? My HR really does that and it wasn't the equipment after all. Oh dopey me! LOL. The cardio said it's a vaso-vagal reaction due to complete emptying of the ventricle. It made me realize I should quit always blaming the equipment because the issue might actually have a physiological basis.Thanks for all your ideas on the physiological possibilities for why my BP cuff doesn't work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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